Mehidy 87*, Jaker 58 help Bangladesh fight back on truncated third day

Mehidy Hasan Miraz's fifty took Bangladesh into the lead • AFP/Getty Images

Mirpur, October 23:

Bangladesh 106 and 283 for 7 (Mehidy 87*, Jaker 58, Rabada 4-35) lead South Africa 308 by 81 runs

Bad light forced the third day's play of the Dhaka Test to be called off at 4pm local time, an hour before the scheduled end of the day. Bangladesh fought back in the game and now lead by 81 runs, with South Africa still short of three wickets. The hosts ended the day on 283 for 7, thanks mainly to half-centuries from Mehidy Hasan Miraz and the debutant Jaker Ali.

Play was stopped at 3.17pm after 17 minutes of play under floodlights at the Shere Bangla National Stadium. There was earlier a 78-minute stoppage due to rain from 1.42pm onwards. This is unseasonal rain in Bangladesh due to a depression in the Bay of Bengal, which is forecast to turn into a cyclone on Wednesday.

Mehidy was Bangladesh's saviour on the day with his fourth half-century this year, once again saving the team's blushes from a difficult position. They were 112 for 6, from where Mehidy and Jaker added 138 runs for the seventh wicket. It is Bangladesh's third century stand from the seventh wicket in their last five Tests.

Mehidy struck nine fours and a six in his 171-ball stay on the third day, batting confidently enough to pass some of that confidence to Jaker, who had got only 2 in the first innings. But the day had started horribly for Bangladesh, who lost three wickets in the first 30 minutes of play, with a Test to save.

Kagiso Rabada had removed both of Bangladesh's overnight batters Mahmudul Hasan Joy and Mushfiqur Rahim by the fourth over of the day. Mahmudul edged a wide one, giving first slip an easy catch after making 40. Rabada then blew away Mushfiqur's middle stump later in the over with a delivery that was similar to his dismissal of the same batter in the first innings; while Mushfiqur lost two stumps on the first day, this time it was the middle pole which came off.

When Litton Das was caught behind off Keshav Maharaj shortly afterwards, Bangladesh slipped to 112 for 6, and were in danger of an innings defeat on the third day. Mehidy and Jaker then stepped in, battling through a tough first session, and helping Bangladesh go past South Africa's 202-run first-innings lead.

Jaker, who played second fiddle to Mehidy, struck the ball nicely through the covers. He pinched two fours through fine leg too, one of them getting him to a half-century. Jaker hammered Rabada with a confident pull shot too. He also took three fours off Rabada, twice through the off side and once through a pull.

Mehidy, meanwhile, was mainly effective against Maharaj, hitting him for four boundaries through the covers - sometimes even lofted ones, but mostly along the ground. He generally handled spin well, as Bangladesh got within one run of South Africa's lead at lunch.

An hour into the second session, rain stopped play for 78 minutes. Before the rain break, Jaker reached had his maiden Test fifty. He fell lbw to Maharaj after getting beaten trying to turn the ball on the leg side. The umpire gave it out despite a casual appeal from the visitors, but replays showed it was the correct decision. Jaker struck seven fours in his 111-ball stay.